


Keeping You Safe

by NyxAqua



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: F/F, Light Angst, Protective Lena Luthor, SuperCorp Week, Supercorp Week 2K17, These two idiots finally doing something about their feelings for one another
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-25
Updated: 2017-08-25
Packaged: 2018-12-19 19:07:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,169
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11904279
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NyxAqua/pseuds/NyxAqua
Summary: When Kara tries to apprehend the alien she let go free while she was under the influence of Red Kryptonite and her plan back fires, Lena is there to save her life. The aftermath left in the wake of Lena's actions leaves each of them reeling about their relationship, both personally and professionally, with one another.





	Keeping You Safe

“Poor Supergirl,” Knamor gritted. His fingers were wound tightly in her hair as he pulled her head up. His lips were so close to her ear now that she could feel his putrid breath coat the side of her face with his next words. “You should have never let me go. How’s it feel to be powerless? How does it feel to bleed?”

The gravel beneath her knees dug uncomfortably into her skin. Her head ached and she could taste blood, metallic and warm, from the cut on her lip. She looked up at the red sun and cursed its existence. She had been stupid to follow him here without knowing more about this planet. “Trust me, if it hadn’t been for the Red Kryptonite I would have destroyed you that night.”

He scoffed at her response. “Excuses, excuses, excuses. I’m surprised the humans still let you fly around after that little incident.” He shoved her forward harshly as he released her hair. The steps he took around her resonated in the desert canyon, small pebbles clattering down from the blood orange cliffs that encompassed them. 

She caught herself, her hands hitting the sand hard, and felt pain shoot up her wrists. “Just get it over with, Knamor,” she spat back at him. 

He stopped in front of her. His band of fellow K’hunds flanked his sides, many in awe that their new leader had caught the Kryptonian, Earth’s own champion. He pulled a sleek, silver ray gun from his belt and pointed it right at her face. “Now is your chance. Any parting words from the last daughter of Krypton?”

“Yeah. Try ‘You’re fucked.’” Alex’s snarled words echoed across the sand from behind the K’hund army. 

Before Knamor could even shout out an order for defense, shots rang across the desert scene. The DEO team that had appeared alongside Alex had the upper hand. Their arrival through the transporter was lost during Knamor’s arrogant mocking of Supergirl. And despite being outnumbered and physically smaller than their alien opponents, the DEO team was effective in pushing their way through the first wave of the K’hund fighters. 

Kara shielded herself with her cape as bullets, both earthly and alien, whistled through the air. She heard someone approach her place in the sand. She twisted to the side and was able to land a well-placed kick on the K’hund fighter’s jaw who had rushed her position. Ignoring the pain now searing through her foot, she stepped behind another opponent and caught his arm, giving Vasquez the chance to put two shots into his torso. 

A harsh yank on her cape suddenly tore her back to the hot sand. Knamor’s face appeared above her and she had to roll, first right and then left, to avoid the punches he threw down at her. She gathered enough effort to push herself into a crouching position, dodging his careless swings as she went. 

“It’s over, Knamor! You are going back to prison!” She was finally on her feet and stood confident, despite her lack of powers, before him now that her backup had arrived.

“I don’t think so, Supergirl! I made the mistake of letting your mother put me in jail and I don’t plan on making the same mistake with you!”

He lunged at her. Unfortunately, her yellow sun-powered instincts got the best of her and she met his face with her fist. The cracking of her bones in her right hand was somehow louder to her than the gunshots that were still ringing across the valley. She cried out in pain and clutched her hand.

Knamor stumbled backward, grasping at his face, slightly dazed by her hit. He too soon recovered, though, and lunged again. This time, although she knew it would hurt, she swung her unharmed fist at him. But all she hit was air. She froze. She realized her mistake too late.

Knamor had lowered his body, like a football player setting up at the line. With a sweeping motion of his leg, he knocked her legs out from under her. Her back crashed into the ground with a hollow thud, forcing the air out of her lungs in a painful wheezing sound. 

“I’m not going back to prison,” he declared. His cruel smile, his teeth decorated with blood from her earlier punch, spread across his face as he cocked the gun and took aim. 

She tenderly crawled back to her knees, their positions coming full circle in this fight, and faced him once again. She let her eyes close, knowing she had lost. As the sound of the shot reached her ears, she was tackled from the side. The force of the impact knocked her to the sand hard and she grunted in surprise and relief.

She opened her eyes and raised her head slightly in time to see Alex come up behind Knamor, kicking him in the back of knee and then wrapping her arm around his neck, effectively putting him in a choke-hold, as another agent rushed up and disarmed him of the ray gun. Vasquez was quick to pull the modified restraints out of her belt and fasten them to his wrists. He bellowed out his protests but they were lost on the DEO agents, more of whom swarmed to assist in his capture.

As she continued to push herself up from the sand, she took in the sight of the figure who had heroically intervened – who had taken the ray gun’s bullet for her. The figure, clad in standard black gear of the DEO, was laying in the sand before her. She watched as the body swelled and then receded with a difficult and shaky breath. And that was when she noticed the rest of the figure. She took note of the long black ponytail, not standard protocol for the DEO agents who were required to keep their hair short. And then the sight of the pale skin, the missing weapon and tactical gear holsters from the vest and belt, the tablet that controlled the transporter haphazardly dropped at its feet. All were pieces of the horrible realization that hit her harder than any physical punch could. 

“Lena?! No, no, no, no!” She wasn’t supposed to be here. She was only supposed to help the team with the transporter, not be in the actual field. “Lena, talk to me!”

Kara rolled Lena onto her back. This caused a groan from the dark haired woman who was clutching her side, right above her hip. Kara unfastened the utility belt and vest clumsily, her broken fingers useless in their actions. She untucked the black tactical shirt from Lena’s pants and pulled it up. On the paper white skin that she uncovered she found an angry red blotch that was beginning to turn a dark purple, a perfect impression of the bullet. But astonishingly there was no blood and no entrance wound. Kara grabbed at Lena’s shirt and pushed it up further looking for the damage she knew should be there. That is when she felt the cool mesh that had been sewn onto the inside of the shirt – Winn’s new alien weapon resistant cloth.

“I guess we can tell Winn it works. Field tested, DEO approved.” Lena’s words were labored although she gave a cheeky smile and a small chuckle.

Kara didn’t laugh. 

Alex knelt down on the other side of Lena, a proud smile of her own blossoming across her face. “Nice dive, Luthor. You think you can walk so we can get outta here?”

Lena tried to take a deep breath but the pain of the action registered on her face. “If you can get me up, I can walk.”

“Kara, grab her arm,” Alex instructed. She didn’t acknowledge the mixed emotions written across Kara’s face. They needed to get off this planet before they tackled that issue. 

Together, the Danvers sisters pulled Lena into a sitting position and then lifted her all the way up to her feet. Alex only stopped to pick up the tablet as they walked Lena to the transporter slowly. She held it out to Lena so that she could key in the proper command for their return. 

As the purple static formed within the transporter’s arch, Lena took Kara’s unharmed hand, interlocking their fingers tightly. She let Alex step into the transporter first, and then took two shaky steps up onto the platform, pulling the still silent Kara behind her. 

When the DEO landing bay appeared in front of them, Kara was quick to drop Lena’s hand. She only ghosted behind Lena long enough for the DEO’s medical team to usher her into a wheelchair. She watched as they wheeled Lena down the hall, finally letting all of her emotions boil in her veins at the sight.

“Kara, you need sunlamps. You should go with her to the medical bay.” Alex stopped behind her, her hands on her hips in a stance that was prepared to take whatever lashing Kara was about to dole out. 

Kara turned slowly. “How could you, Alex? You know what she means to me! You know that I love–” A sob, a combination of sadness and anger, stopped her from finishing. Without giving her older sibling a chance to reply, she turned on her heel and walked after Lena and the medical team. 

************************************************************************************

“You don’t have any internal bleeding. You’ll be sore for a while and have one hell of a bruise but you’re going to be fine,” the medical agent reported as she taped the wrapping in place around Lena’s torso. “Is that too tight? Can you breathe?”

Lena glanced up over the agent’s shoulder as Kara entered the room. “It’s fine, thank you.”

The agent followed Lena’s eyes and looked over at the superhero standing in the doorway. She nodded to the chair in the corner with the yellow-sun panels over it as she opened a small freezer near Lena. “Supergirl, you know the drill.”

“Can you leave us, please?” Kara didn’t move from her place just inside the room. 

The agent handed Lena an ice pack. “Ten minutes on–”

“And ten minutes off,” Lena supplied. “I know. Thank you, again.”

With a curious look between the two women the agent gave an awkward smile and left. 

Lena evaluated Kara in the silence that fell over them. She was standing in front of her with her arms crossed and a hostile look across her battered face. Her bottom lip was caked with blood and a bruise was beginning to appear below her right eye. Lena could see how Kara was tenderly holding up her right hand, one of the fingers bent at an awkward angle. “I’ve never seen you hurt before. It’s...it’s unnerving.” She finished quieter than she had started, the disappointment she found in Kara’s eyes weakening her resolve. 

“What were you thinking?” It wasn’t a scream, it wasn’t loud. It wasn’t even in a malicious tone. But it still cut Lena to the core. 

“I wasn’t thinking,” she admitted.

“Clearly!” This time Kara’s voice was raised. She threw her hands in the air. She felt a sharp pain radiate in her hand from her broken fingers and moved toward the sunlamps, suddenly remembering why she was there. She flipped the switch for the lights and the hum of the machine filled the room. She sat in the chair and let the scanner quickly pass over her eyes. 

“Hello, Kara Zor-El,” an electronic voice rang out as the scan finished. “Estimated heal time is two hours and twenty-eight minutes.”

Kara groaned. Once she was situated in the chair and the artificial yellow light filled the space, she let out a content sigh as the light began to regenerate her cells. Although the light felt good on her body, her mind was still aching with the fear of what could have happened. She slouched down and rested her face in her left hand. 

Lena watched this entire process quietly. When Kara had stilled in the chair she finally spoke. “Why has this become the norm? I save a life and get hostility. I don’t even get a simple thank you.” This is how every interaction with Kara went when she was clad in the red, blue, and gold. Nothing she ever did was good enough for Supergirl.

“Because you risked your own life! You jumped in front of a bullet! For me!” Kara jerked her head up but stayed seated.

“And I’ll do it again! Every single chance I get!” She punctuated each word of her last declaration with a jab of her finger at the blonde. Her anger was stifled, though, by the pain from her side. She took a delicate breath and hunched over slightly trying to find a position that alleviated the pain the most. She swallowed hard and raised her eyes back to Kara’s face trying desperately to make her understand.  _ Just tell her, she thought. Just say the words. I love you and I can’t stand the thought of losing you. _

“You’re not invincible, Lena. And you’re not properly trained. You can’t be a part of this organization in this way!”

“We were on a red sun planet. I was more protected than you! You’re not invincible either!”

“Yeah, I made a mistake but I–”

“A mistake that could have killed you!” A tear slipped down Lena’s cheek and her voice cracked at the thought. “Why can you save everyone else but no one can save you? Do you do this with Alex every time she is there for you?”

“That’s different and it makes my point! Alex has training, Lena!”

“Then I’ll get trained!”

“Ms. Luthor?” Vasquez stood in the doorway, her eyes averted to the floor and an uncertain look across her face. Everyone on the main floor had overheard the exchange including her. “Your driver has arrived.”

“Thank you, Agent Vasquez,” Lena gritted through her teeth, her eyes never leaving Kara’s face. She slipped off the hospital bed clumsily but collected herself quickly. Without another word or glance toward Kara, she left the room.

She had barely made the lobby when she heard the familiar click of red heeled-boots come up behind her, quickly closing the distance between them. Lena didn’t stop or turn. She didn’t trust herself to keep her emotions in check and that is what was needed in this situation with Kara. She pushed the glass door open and felt Kara’s body close behind her.  

An unexpected storm had opened up over National City. The rain pelted the top of Lena’s car like a thousand bullets. Her driver stood patiently with a massive umbrella covering the open door, waiting for Lena to enter the vehicle. 

“Supergirl, there is no need to see me out. Despite what you think of my abilities, or lack thereof, I am perfectly capable of getting home.”

“Lena.” Kara’s voice was filled with frustration. “I’m just trying to keep you safe. You have no business being involved with the DEO like this. You’re a consultant, not a field agent.”

Lena rounded on Kara. “I don’t need you dictating what I can and cannot do, okay? I’m not fragile!”

“I’ve never thought you were.” It was an admission that was hard to say. It was so much easier for them to stay in their designated roles. Kara the hero and protector, Lena the damsel. “I owe you a thank you,” she whispered. “I’m so grateful for you saving my life.”

Lena shot her an uncertain look. She couldn’t help admiring Kara, as she always did. The sharp lines of her jawline made soft by the blonde locks that framed her face. It amazed Lena how someone could be so strong and yet still be so soft. The worry and anxiety written across her brow only made this juxtaposition stand out. And knowing that in front of her was both Kara and Supergirl exaggerated this difference further.

“But I can’t allow you back in the field again even as a consultant. Next time you are staying here,” Kara continued.

Lena scoffed and shook her head at Kara’s words. “Why? Is it because I’m human? So too is the rest of the DEO! Or is it because I’m a Luthor and you don’t trust me?”  _ Or is it because you love me too? _

“Dammit, Lena! Why do you have to turn everything between us into a Luthor versus Super ordeal?”

“Because you still don’t trust me even after all I’ve done,” Lena contended. “I’ve saved your sister’s life, the lives of all the aliens in this city, and now your life. And you still don’t trust me!”

“I’ve always trusted you.” It was quiet but still forceful. “This isn’t a matter of trust. Why do you think that I don’t have a DEO army following you around constantly especially with as much danger as you attract? It’s because I do–”

“I don’t know,” Lena interrupted with a reckless laugh. “Maybe because you can’t wait to save me yet again?”

Supergirl’s silence in the face of her question made her flush. She suddenly realized how cruel and petty her words made her seem, two traits that she held in contempt. She turned back toward the street, not wanting to drown in those blue eyes that she found so much comfort in. It was so infuriating to try to show that she could be more to Kara. She knew Kara would always protect her. Why couldn't she do the same in return?

“You are right, though. Saving you–” Kara sighed and stopped as she tried to figure out exactly how to say what she felt. “Saving you is gratifying. Knowing I’ve protected you and that you’re safe gives me so much happiness. But the fact that I  _ have _ to save you scares me more than anything.”

“Oh?” Lena didn’t dare turn. She heard the hope in her own voice at Kara’s words and wondered if they meant what she thought they did. But she cringed as she felt her heart began to race at those thoughts and hated how her body always betrayed her. She felt Kara step up close behind her. She could feel the warmth she radiated even on such a cold and dreary day like this one. 

“Will you please come back in? Can we talk about this?”

“Thanks for the offer, Supergirl,” she said, “but I think I’ll pass.” She wanted nothing more than to stay with her, always. But she needed time to figure out how to deal with the love that made her natural reflex be jumping in front of a bullet and the competing demands of Kara for her to stay safe. She needed to figure out how to avoid this argument in the future and this tension between the two of them.

Kara sighed again, this time out of exhaustion. “Lena, please don’t leave like this.”

Lena stepped under the umbrella held out by her driver. “Good day, Supergirl,” she whispered and slipped into the vehicle.

************************************************************************************

By the time Lena was at her apartment, she wanted nothing more than to turn around and run back to Kara, to make sure she healed properly. No matter how frustrated she may have been at her, Lena’s concern for her would always outweigh it. But she also wanted to make Kara understand why she did what she did and make her believe that she could help. 

She placed her purse down on the entryway table and clicked on the living room lights. Without a chance to take two steps further, three frantic knocks came from the door. 

Kara Danvers stood in the hallway. Her purple sweater and khaki pants were spattered with rain, her hair was completely disheveled, dripping with rain drops. She had not even bothered putting on her glasses to complete her disguise in her obvious rush to Lena’s apartment. “We’re not finished with our conversation,” she announced.

Lena arched her eyebrow and crossed her arms, ready for round three. She looked at Kara’s face, still slightly bruised, but better even with the short exposure to the sunlamps. Half of her wanted to turn Kara away, to tell her to go back and take care of herself since she wouldn’t let anyone else do it. But the other half wanted to collect her in her arms and never let her leave. The two arguments were at a stalemate in her mind so her mouth made the decision for her. “What else could you possibly have left to tell me? You should be under a sunlamp, Kara.” 

And it was that snark that set Kara off. “You can’t– You’re so stupid sometimes! And stubborn! I just–” Kara paced in front of her trying to collect her thoughts while asserting some sort of authority in the conversation. But her eyes betrayed her words and tone. There was something else there. It was protective, it was warm. It was love.

Lena bit her lip. They had kept this secret, one and the same for both of them, for too long from one another.  _ Jesus, one of us needs to step up here, she thought. Someone has to be brave and make the first move. _

Before Kara could mutter another word, Lena grabbed the front of Kara’s sweater and pulled her in close. She felt Kara’s arms wrap around her simultaneously as their bodies melded together. When their lips met there was no shred of doubt that this is what they both wanted – what had been creating the tension between them the entire time. If this was a mistake then they were equally at fault.

Kara’s face was damp from the rain, and as Lena pulled off the purple sweater it left the scent of wet fabric on Kara’s tanned skin. It was a scent she eagerly inhaled as her mouth explored the blonde’s upper body and she moaned at the urgent sounds that spilled from Kara as she made a competing claim to Lena’s body as well. Lena didn’t want gentle lovemaking at this moment. No, she wanted it fast, frenzied so that her mind wouldn’t have time to step in with its doubt and rationality. There was so much between them – their families, their jobs, their entire lives – that this relationship, whatever it turned into, would be complicated. They would have to deal with the consequences of what was happening between them later. 

She could feel Kara holding back, trying to slow down their progress and dictate what they were doing, always the authority figure. But Lena fought her with every step they made toward the bedroom. She used her body to taunt the hero into submission, into being under  _ her _ control for once. And Lena wasn’t sure whether it was this psychological power of knowing she was the conqueror, finally, as Kara relinquished the lead to her, or if it was the sight of Kara giving into her own feelings, expressing herself as Kara Danvers rather than the stoic and formidable Supergirl, that fueled her desire to unbelievable heights. 

As the thunder faded and the rain’s war on the city slowed, and they were both sated by the other’s body, Lena finally let her brain rule their interaction. “I know you’re still mad at me but I’m not going to stop protecting you. Ever. I don’t care what I have to invent or build, how much money it costs, or if I have to physically put myself in front of a bullet for you. I’ll do anything it takes to keep you safe.”

Kara rolled onto her side, her eyes raking Lena’s relaxed form. “Are you ever going to not be stubborn?” There was slight irritation in the tone of Kara’s voice but a soft smile pulled at her lips.

“Probably not,” Lena admitted with a small smile. “You don’t have to be strong all the time, especially around me, you know? You have the weight of two worlds on your shoulders and it’s not fair. I can’t completely alleviate that pressure but I can protect you,” and then even softer she whispered, “and love you.” She let her fingers trace Kara’s eyebrow, continuing a path along the side of her face. “Will you please let me take care of you?”

Kara closed her eyes in defeat. Two losses in one day. She was okay with being on the losing side this time, though. She scooted up as close as she could and tucked herself under Lena’s chin. When Lena’s arms wrapped around her tightly, she took a deep breath, letting the scent of Lena’s skin flood her soul, and felt her stress melt off of her as she released it slowly. 

And with that one exhale, Lena felt the universe right itself. They still had a lot to talk about and those discussions wouldn’t be easy or calm given their personalities, but right now, if only for the moment, she was assured that nothing could get through her embrace and that Kara was safe.

**Author's Note:**

> Written for Day 6 of Supercorp Week 2k17. Prompt: Protective Kara or Protective Lena
> 
> Huge thanks to my write or die, sten06 (@stennnn06) for reading this through first. As always, all typos and errors are my own. 
> 
> Come yell at me on tumblr: @nevertobeships


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